Louisville - Churchill Downs

Last stop on our Louisville visit was Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby.

Churchill Downs officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was prominent in Kentucky for many years.  The first Kentucky Derby, part of today's Triple Crown, and the first Kentucky Oaks (held on the Friday before the Derby for 3 year old fillies) were held in the same year.  Churchill Downs has also hosted the Breeder's Cup on nine occasions, most recently on November 2-3, 2018.

The racetrack is owned and operated by Churchill Downs Incorporated.  With the infield open for the Kentucky Derby, the capacity of Churchill Downs is roughly 170,000.

We arrived well before our reserved tour and hadn't had lunch so we walked a few blocks to the back of the track to the famed Wagner's Pharmacy to grab a bite to eat.

What started as a low-key meeting spot for coffee and conversation among horsemen, it was eventually discovered by the media and has now been written about by many outlets.  Wagner's opened in 1922 when Leo Wagner bought Hagen's Pharmacy where he worked since he was 14.  Threatened by another newly opened pharmacy on the block, Wagner looked for a market to corner and found it at Churchill Downs.

There is a lot of Derby history inside.  If you've seen the movie Secretariat, you might remember Diane Lane (as Penny Chenery) meeting inside with James Cromwell (as Ogden Phipps).  They have memorialized the table they sat at while filming.

The dining room isn't much but the food was good.

But the history is amazing.  Photos of every Derby winner.

Horse parking 5 cents.

We enjoyed seeing the back of the racetrack as we walked back to the front.

And then it was time to start the tour.

And we're off!

There was a nice movie in the round to give us an overview of the track.

Our guide took us out to the track for a look around.  I was hoping to see the stables but, unfortunately, we just went to the grandstands to take it all in.

After we returned to the museum, we spent some time looking at the exhibits.  There was a mock "race" available so I placed my bet and watched the race.

Look at that - I picked Ship's Piano for second and that's where he/she finished!  Too bad I hadn't put any money on it.

Queen Elizabeth made several visits to Kentucky during her 70 year reign as both princess and monarch.  She visited the state a total of 5 times between 1984 and 2007 touring local stud farms and meeting some of horse racing's biggest names.

One of the Queen's dreams was to attend the Kentucky Derby and in 2007, she did just that.

Photo courtesy of msnbc

There was a replica of her hat on display.

Since this was the 50th anniversary of Secretariat's incredible Derby, and ultimately the Triple Crown win, there was a nice display highlighting these achievements.

As we left the park, we stopped by the statue of Barbaro (April 29, 2003-January 29, 2007) who was a champion racehorse who won the 2006 Kentucky Derby.  Sadly, two weeks later he shattered his leg during the Preakness Stakes which ended his racing career and eventually led to the need to euthanize him.  I remember that time so well and can't believe it's been that long.  Tammy, can you believe it?

Barbaro was cremated shortly after he was euthanized.  It was later announced that his cremains would be interred in front of an entrance to Churchill Downs and that a bronze statue would be placed atop his remains.  The owners chose to place his remains outside of both Churchill Downs and the adjacent Kentucky Derby Museum to allow his admirers to pay their respects without having to pay an admission fee.

What a day!  We can't wait to watch the Kentucky Derby in just a few weeks.